Harry Shay scored two of his three goals in the first quarter.
Wootton's defense was superb throughout the game.
By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

As Wootton’s boy’s lacrosse team posed for a team picture following its 12-5 win in the 4A/3A West regional finals against Bethesda-Chevy Chase, a player shouted one word and nearly every player echoed it and flashed a sign with his hands.

Dynasty.

It’s a word that made Colin Thomson cringe a small bit when he heard it, but not even the modest Wootton coach could deny his players their glory. Wootton convincingly won its third straight 4A/3A West region title Wednesday at its home field, setting up a rematch of last year’s 4A/3A state semifinals with Dulaney.

But even more impressive and what the players said made this year’s region championship even more special than last year’s is that it came on the heels of losing 17 seniors from last season’s state finalist squad, proving that Wootton’s program isn’t going to go anywhere soon.

“I try not to get too big on [the dynasty] but they earned on it,” Thomson said. “The players put a lot of time and effort in because they didn’t want to have a dropoff like everyone thought we were going to have. So they were working really hard to get back up to that level we were at last year and you seen where we’ve come.”

The Patriots are 17-1 and haven’t lost a game since falling to the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference’s runner-up, Good Counsel, in their season opener.

Thomson told his team it played its best game of the season Wednesday night. After a scoreless first half, Wootton scored six of the game’s next seven goals. Just when Bethesda-Chevy Chase made it a game, pulling to within 7-3, Wootton rattled off five straight goals to take a 12-3 lead with less than three minutes left in the game.

Senior midfielder Jordan Montesano led the Patriots in scoring with three goals and an assist. Senior attackman Harry Shay scored three goals, including two in the second quarter, and sophomore attackman Jeff Zifrony had two goals and an assist.

“Each game we’re building the dynasty more and more,” Shay said. “Previous years, guys were respecting us. This year we didn’t get the respect we wanted and we’re doing it again and it feels even better. We’re using the fuel of everybody saying we weren’t going to come back and we’re just using that to our advantage and pulling through.”

Wootton won by the same margin in last year’s regional semifinals, beating Springbrook 15-8. The Patriots took an especially large hit on the offensive end and the defense said it felt pressure to hold the team together early in the season. The offense has blossomed, however, in recent weeks.

But on Wednesday, it was Wootton’s defense that once again took over. The Patriots held Bethesda-Chevy Chase, who was making its first regional finals appearance, to just five shots in the first half. Senior Chris Pappalardo scored two first-half goals for the Barons but by the time others chimed in it was too late.

“They have a really strong defense that’s the backbone of their team,” Pappalardo said. “They really pressured us unlike any other team has this season. … It feels great making history for this school but it’s harsh to lose.”

Wootton is once again on a mission to make history. The Patriots did so last year by becoming the first team from Montgomery County, boys or girls, to ever reach the state finals. This year, Wootton is looking to do more.

“We still have a good core group of guys who were there last year so they know what it’s about,” Thomson said. “I could sense it there at the end that they still wanted to play more.”